STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - Mayor Bill de Blasio and Speaker
Melissa Mark-Viverito announced plans for a sweeping expansion of the city's
paid sick leave bill -- aiming to cover an additional half million workers and
speeding up its implementation to April.

"Starting this April, the lives of over a half million New
Yorkers will be immeasurably better," de Blasio said at a press conference in
Brooklyn. "Their lives will be more secure. Families will be stronger and more
stable because they will have paid sick leave coverage."

Under de Blasio's proposal, which would have to be passed by
the Council, employers with five or more employees would have to provide paid
sick time beginning in April.

The bill passed under Quinn called for employers with 20 or
more workers to begin providing paid sick days in April, and with 15 or more
workers to provide them in 2015. The bill also allowed for the measure to be
stalled entirely if the economy is bad -- something de Blasio said would be
removed with this expansion.

"In a troubled economy, people need paid sick leave even
more to protect their families," de Blasio said.

But Councilman Vincent Ignizio, the Minority Leader, said
there should be no rush to expand a bill that hasn't even gone into effect yet.

"The unintended consequences of this bill is that small
businesses are going to lay off employees to get below that five employee
number," Ignizio warned.

Ignizio voted against the compromise bill as well, but it
passed without his and fellow Republican votes, and the Council overrode a veto
from Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Ignizio said the Council should wait for a more
objective measure of how it works before expanding it.

"The original bill was a product of compromise from
business, labor and the elected representatives of New York City," he said.
"Let's wait to see the impact that has."

In a statement, the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce said it understood paid sick time is important to the lives of New Yorkers -- but struck a similar tone as Ignizio when it came to seeing how the compromise bill would have fared.

"At the same time, we must look at this initiative and understand how it will impact our small business community and economy," the statement continued. "We believe that the compromise bill that was negotiated last year, which included input from all stakeholders, would have provided the City an opportunity to see how mandatory paid sick time would affect job growth and hiring."

But wait-and-see was not the preferred mood among supporters
of the bill, including the Council's new Speaker.

"You should not have to choose between your health or your
job," Ms. Mark-Viverito said. "For far too many New Yorkers, this is a choice
they must make."

The bill also expands beyond parents who can take paid
sick time to care for ill children -- including grandparents, aunts, uncles and
siblings who serve as caretakers.

"Many families already close to the edge economically,
living on the brink, are just one illness away from losing that paycheck," de
Blasio said. "For a lot of families losing one day's pay can set them back."

A large contingent of Council members was on hand for the
announcement, making passage of the bill look likely, despite the objections Ignizio
and Councilman Steven Matteo, who also opposes the bill.